Sonoma County Biography
Vernon Downs
One of the many worthy citizens of capable and progressive agriculturists of Sonoma county is Vernon Downs, whose ranch of three hundred and seventy-three acres on Rural Route No. 6 from Santa Rosa is admirably located for the cultivation of grain and fruits, and the land not so used is devoted to stock-raising. This has been the continuous home of Mr. Downs for the past forty-one years, and notwithstanding the fact that he is now in his eighty-sixth year, he still superintends the management of his property and is as interested in the affairs of his home community and of the affairs of the world at large as he was half a century ago.
The descendant of New England ancestors, Vernon Downs was born in Hancock county, Me., May 3, 1825. His parents died when he was a young boy, and thereafter he was reared by a neighboring farmer until he was nineteen years of age. Then, in 1844, he went to Tallahassee, Fla., where he clerked in a merchandise store for a year and a half. He then went to Georgia, and in Decatur county he carried on a store of his own under the name of V. Downs & Co. It was while he was engaged in the business just mentioned that the news of the finding of gold in California first reached his ears. While he was young and impressionable, and apparently waiting for just such an opportunity as this news seemed to offer, it was not adventure alone that prompted him to respond to its call, but rather a deeper desire to find a suitable niche in the world for his abilities, where their application would redound to his credit and bring him satisfaction and happiness. It was after weighing the matter carefully than in December of 1849 he set sail for Panama, with California as his ultimate destination, and on May 6, 1850, he landed in San Francisco. The attractions of the mines of Placer county county drew him to that locality, and for three years his interests were centered there, but with what success the records fail to mention. His first appearance in Sonoma county was at the close of his experience in Placer county, when he came to Santa Rosa and assisted in building the flouring mill at this place. His interest in mining, however, had not been entirely satisfied, and the year 1863 again found him absorbed in mining, this time in Idaho where he continued altogether for the following four years. With the close of this experience he again came to Sonoma county, and has made his home here ever since, which makes him one of the county's oldest settler. In 1868 he purchased and settled upon the ranch which is his home today, in close proximity to Santa Rosa, and which consists of three hundred and seventy-three acres of splendid land. Grain and the various fruits adapted to this soil and climate are raised in abundance, and the remainder of the land is used as pasturage for the large number of stock that he raises and fattens for the market. A leader rather than a follower, his movements as an agriculturist have been watched with interest by those of less daring, and when his efforts proved successful others adopted his plans, to the end that his influence in the upbuilding and improvement of the locality has been an important factor in bringing about present conditions in Sonoma county.
Mr. Downs' first marriage occurred in 1858, united him with Miss Elizabeth Rawles, who passed away the following year. His second marriage occurred October 29, 1867, uniting him with Miss Martha Jane Churchman, the daughter of Judge William Churchman, her birth occurring in Washington county, Iowa, December 1, 1843. The six children born of this marriage are as follows: Lillian, Vernon, Carrie, George H., Horace A. and Edith. The youngest of the children, Edith, was born August 1, 1883, and on July 31, 1910 became the wife of William J. A. Gabrelsen, of San Francisco. George Hancock Downs, who served as in the Spanish-American war, died August 17, 1909. Politically Mr. Downs is a Republican, and although interested in political affairs, has not been an office seeker, and aside from minor offices has never consented to act in any public capacity. On various occasions he has served as school trustee, and has also held other small offices within the gift of his fellow-citizens, but aside from these his time has been given to his ranch interests.
History of Sonoma County, California
History by Tom Gregory : Historic Record Company, 1891
Los Angeles, Ca. 1911
Transcribed by Roberta Hester Leatherwood
July 2008
Pages 975-976
Sonoma County Biographies ~ Archive Biography Index ~ Archive Index
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